A. L. Buehrer What I Write and Why

Wednesday, December 10, 2014

I keep
hearing people say that yet another detail you should never include in your
fiction-writing is reference to the weather. Nobody wants to hear about it,
they say. Just get straight to the action, don’t bother setting the scene,
nobody has the patience for that, just go, go, go.

And most importantly, never ever open a scene, or (flinching) a book with weather.

Again, I could be completely weird, but I
personally am not all that offended when an author takes note of the
atmospheric conditions. People, especially the kind who write cash-fiction,
seem to have lost all regard for the idea of mood in writing anymore. Also,
unless your story is set in a ridiculously temperate climate, it’s very likely
that weather will actually affect the plot.
Even if you are the kind of writer that only writes down what happened in the story, and nothing else,
remember that blizzards, droughts, ice-storms, and hurricanes also happen.

I like meteorology, I’ll admit that. I also
love richly atmospheric writing. Mood in writing isn’t just a disembodied
emotional or mental feeling, it can be intensified and symbolized by the
physical world. Weather is a very natural and artistic way to do that. Wind
blows restlessly down the empty streets as the sky darkens, the heat
intensifies in the afternoon and purple haze stifles the distant trees, the
hero wakes up from a bizarre nightmare to the sound of thunder, and lightning
blazes over the snow-covered world. Please!!! We can’t stand reading about
this. Edit that out, you’re losing your readers!!!!!

Really?

The Stardrift
Trilogy opens quite unabashedly with weather, as does the Rhapsody Threnody series. I honestly
don’t see why that would be such a drawback for anyone. Don’t omit details if
they can be used to make your writing strong. Ever. Details don’t have to be
boring or irrelevant. Try manipulating them to see if they can work for you
before throwing them out.

Thursday, December 4, 2014

Here’s
something to know: if you can’t write about children, don’t. Children are
extremely complex creatures. Though everyone has been one, some have them, some
work with them, and others are barely not them, they’re still some of the most
difficult people to portray realistically.

I see it all the time, even in ‘real’ novels
by ‘real’ authors. Children, especially when in groups tend to be sort of…wrong.
Sometimes it can be hard to put your finger on, other times you know exactly
what the author did wrong.

Let’s talk about some common issues that I can
often spot. Here’s a big one to start off with: Children don’t always say the right things at the right time. That
should be pretty obvious. In fact, who does? But what I’m actually referring to
is a different kind of “right thing” than you might be thinking of.

Authors do this all the time. I can’t stand
it. You’ve got you’re couple standing there talking along until Mr. White
Smile-Nice Hair says something unrealistic to Miss Love Interest. About this
point Adorable Child with Bouncing Curls says “Why is your face all red, Miss
Lovey?”

Mwaaaa!!! (Do you like that expression of
disgust?) Have you ever known a kid
to notice when somebody was blushing? They don’t do it. No, I’m not saying kids
don’t notice details or recognize shifts of emotions, they certainly do. But
why would a kid ask such a silly question, even if, for some reason, they were
carefully watching the color-saturation of Miss Lovey’s face?

Oh, and that’s another thing, unless they’re
under three years old, and really can’t pronounce somebody’s name, childrendon’t make up nicknames for people. The only reason a kid would
call somebody a nickname is if they heard other people calling them that. Got
it?

Children
don’t try to be cute. They just are. This is a place where age comes in to
play a lot, though. This rule isn’t very strict, but if you have a moment where
a kid is trying to be cute, keep it fairly isolated. In spite of what we my
think, the motives behind children’s actions are not often to be cute.

Children
will do all kinds of things to get attention. Being cute is just one of
them, small ones go up and hang on adults and say things over and over. Often
start making mischief or showing off when there’s company in the house.

Keep in mind that an awful lot can change
from year to year in a child’s life in reference to their behavior. Be familiar
with the age group you’re writing about. Also, aside from being a child, children are also individuals. Don’t
forget to map out their character just as much as you would any other. Think
about where they’ve been and where they’re going in their development into a
grown person. Don’t make them into little adults, but think about their hopes
and fears at the present time in reference to how those will manifest themselves
in the future.

One final note, if you must write a story
about a large family, don’t be lazy. Every sibling is going to be unique. Don’t
let them blur together. Don’t make their relationships fake or stereotypical.
Invent based on experience. Build off of your own experiences growing up, or
watching other children close to you grow up. Every family is different. Some
have problems with sibling rivalry, some don’t. Some are very demonstratively affectionate,
some aren’t. Some definitely split into “the boys” and “the girls” others mix
and match in their choices of playmates. Make your fictional family different
and entertaining, but keep them relatable. It’s great when someone accomplishes
this in a book. Shoot for it.